A Rose by Any Other Name
by jackptollers
Summary: Hermione goes to her special hiding place, but finds that someone is already there! Dramione. - - -Link to Spanish translation on my profile.- - -


**A Rose by Any Other Name**

I have always liked the name Draco. It suited him perfectly. Despite the fact that I called him by his surname, in my head he was always simply 'Draco'. Not that I, err, thought of him. It's not a big deal though, I don't see why should it should matter. Just forget it.

Sorry. I'm a bit stressed at the moment. Voldemort, unfinished schoolwork, and seeing Ron (my crush of 4 years) kissing another girl is certainly bad enough; I didn't need confusing thoughts about Draco Malfoy to know that this was the worst week ever. But I knew that wallowing in self-pity was a waste of time. However, at least a few minutes of alone time were in order.

This is how I found myself taking the walk up to the astronomy tower. It's my secret place where I go to be alone. Not even Harry and Ron know about it. So you would have been surprised too if you had stepped out into the tower to find it already occupied. From the occupant's trembling frame, I guessed that he was crying. And yes, as I am sure you have already guessed, they crying figure was none other than Draco Malfoy. I froze. If he realized I had seen him crying…

I tried to slowly sneak back down the stair, but it was too late. Having heard my sharp intake of breath, he turned around and saw me standing there looking like a deer-in-the-headlights. I could see the tears on his cheeks, and his eyes were still shining with moisture. And then the shouting began.

"Granger, what the _hell_ do you think you're doing here?!" he growled, his silver eyes flashing. I had barely taken a breath to answer when he continued. "If you tell anyone you saw me… like this... I swear to Merlin…" he left the threat hanging. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't hex you right now," he demanded, drawing his wand as he spoke. I realized that I had left my wand in the common room next to my unfinished homework. I stiffened as his wand pointed in my direction.

"Stop it right now Malfoy," I ordered, much calmer than I actually felt. "I won't tell anyone, not that you have any reason to believe me. Please, just calm down. It's not a big deal, everyone cries."

"Not me. I'm a Malfoy. Malfoys never cry," he said, and I detected a trace of bitterness in his voice.

"Would you like to tell me what's wrong?" I improvised, hardly knowing what to say, and never believing he would actually tell me. To my surprise, his shoulders slumped in defeat. He lowered his wand and turned away so that his back was facing me. He didn't look at me, but stared out across the dark grounds.

When he spoke it came out as a strangled whisper, "I have to kill Dumbledore, or else Voldemort will kill my mother. Probably even my entire family." I thought I heard him crying again, which was probably why he had turned away. Despite our enmity and animosity for the last six years, I was genuinely alarmed by this new vulnerability. It was unknown territory, and it frightened me. I already knew about his task, and about Dumbledore's intentions too. I had figured out that it was Malfoy who had sent the necklace and the cursed wine. Dumbledore made me swear to secrecy on the matter.

"I already knew," I told him. "Go to Dumbledore. He can protect you and your mother." It sounded like I was pleading with him.

He turned to face me, and it was odd for him look at me with anything other than disgust or loathing. Now all I saw was vulnerability, and another emotion I couldn't quite place. I much preferred this Malfoy to the Malfoy I'd grown to know and hate in the last 7 years.

"Everything is going to be alright," I told him softly.

He was silent for a moment, but then his expression hardened. "Why do you even care?" he asked, sounding harsh once more. I realized that he was lashing out at me in an attempt to hold on to his reputation and self-proclaimed superiority. It seemed the brief moments of civility were passed, and I tried to disguise my disappointment.

I sighed. "I don't know," I replied honestly, "I guess I just don't like to see people in pain or suffering, and I want to help them; even you Draco."

Both of us froze, stunned into silence by my use of his first name. His gray eyes snapped to my own brown ones, and I felt like I was sinking into pools of silver. I was afraid of how he would react to my little slip.

"You said my name," he whispered, in wonder and bewilderment. He took a few steps in my direction, and then stopped. As if making up his mind, he quickly closed the distance between us. He was now so close that I could see tiny flecks of color in his gray eyes.

He reached out and took an errant strand of my hair between his fingers, tucking it back into place. His hand lingered for a moment, then I felt his fingers brush my cheek. My heart fluttered, and then seemed to speed up. I looked down quickly, glad that the darkness hid my blush. Meanwhile my stomach was doing nervous flips, but it was not an altogether unpleasant sensation.

I refused to look back up at him until he cupped my face in his hand, softer than I would have thought possible, forcing me to meet his gaze.

Our eyes locked for about a millisecond before his lips crashed down on mine. I was so shocked I hardly registered what was happening. His lips moved desperately on mine, trying to get me to respond. I felt him begin to pull away in defeat, and that's when my senses overtook my surprise. It felt like my whole body flared with warmth, and my lips moved against his, matching his urgency. Draco wrapped one arm around my waist, pulling me impossibly close, while his left hand tangled in my brown curls. I threw my arms around his neck and leaned into the kiss. I felt his tongue press gently against my bottom lip, silently asking for entrance. I was barely aware of opening my mouth. Our tongues battled for dominance, but he won eventually. I shivered, and I felt rather than heard him moan against my lips.

Draco had kissed a fair share girls before, but never like this. This kiss was almost unreal, too good to be true. It was a display of passion, desire, and long-suppressed feelings.

But just as quickly as the kiss had started it ended for lack of oxygen. We were both breathing heavily, but Draco refused to let go of me. I buried my face in his chest, and his fingers ran through my hair. I felt safer than I had in years, since even before the war started. I hardly even cared where all this was coming from. Well, that was until I found out.

"I-I love you Hermione."

* * *

Well there you have it folks. Please review!

- Jack


End file.
